I've found a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Honiton. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Honiton are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Honiton in which case you should be looking for a Honiton conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Honiton where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Honiton conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Honiton from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Honiton can be bypassed where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• Some Honiton leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Honiton home move. Where a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.

Completion in due on the sale of our £ 250000 garden flat in Honiton next Tuesday . The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Honiton?

Honiton conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually involves the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is not legally bound to respond to these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They may levy a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it exceeds £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the invoice is technically not due. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Honiton what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Honiton is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can result in certain sections are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Honiton Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

Plenty Honiton leasehold properties will incur a service charge for maintenance of the block levied on behalf of the management company. If you acquire the apartment you will have to meet this contribution, normally quarterly accross the year. This may be anything from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, this is usually not a large figure, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to check as sometimes it could be surprisingly expensive. How many years are left on the lease?